berry jam rounds with lemon icing

My grandma who is no longer with us used to make "jammers" so this recipe reminds me of her. When my grandpa came to dinner and saw them he said, "Has Grandma been here?" These are great cookies and my dad couldn't keep away from them! He said, "You can't just eat one so I'm trying to eat two small ones at a time."

berry jam rounds with lemon icing (blog: or so she says)
1 1/2 cups butter
3/4 cup sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 3/4 teaspoons flour
homemade jam- we used strawberry and blackberry
3 1/2 to 4 cups powdered sugar
12 teaspoons lemon juice
Heat oven to 350. Cream the butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla in a mixer. Slowly add the flour and mix well. Roll the dough into small balls and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Press your finger, gently, in the middle of the ball to flatten and leave an indentation in the middle, to be a "pocket" for the jam. Fill each pocket with a dollop of jam. Bake for about 15-18 minutes, or until you see a slight hint of a golden color on the cookie. Remove from oven and let cool. Meanwhile, mix the powdered sugar and lemon juice to make the icing. Squiggle the icing across the tops of the cookies (I used a zip-lock baggie).

grilled bbq chicken pizza

I had a few friends offer to make meals for my family before our move across the country, just several days away. At first I resisted. Then I realized I was CRAZY to resist and accepted. As our move approaches I feel more and more grateful to my friends knowing I can count on their meals which will enable me to accomplish as much as I can and put my focus where it should be and it's so fun because they're all fabulous cooks so we're in for a real treat. Thank you friends!
This barbecue chicken pizza is terrific. Absolutely terrific. I had never had a homemade grilled pizza before. Please go and make one for yourself.

grilled bbq chicken pizza (my friend Laura)
1 package Pillsbury Pizza Crust Dough

toppings
1-2 grilled chicken breasts, diced and rubbed with Grill Mates Barbecue seasoning then baste with Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce as it cooks
1 cup sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce
4 pepperoncini's, sliced
red onion, thinly sliced
fresh cilantro
mozzarella cheese
dash or oregano

Unroll onto cookie sheet. Brush one side with olive oil. Lay the oiled side directly onto hot grill. Brush top side with olive oil. Cook about 2 minutes, just long enough for crust to get hard on the bottom, then flip it over. Now add toppings and cook until cheese is melted, about 4 minutes.

herb-garlic grilled chicken

I've always enjoyed this marinade. It has a great, bold flavor and compliments just about every side you can think of.

herb-garlic marinade
1 medium-size onion, coarsely chopped (I used red this time)
2/3 cup red wine vinegar
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/3 cup olive oil

Combine ingredients and marinade chicken for several hours or overnight.

What I have to say- I marinaded this chicken for 48 hours. It was GREAT! It would be really great in a fresh roll with mozzarella, pepperoncini and red onion.

hershey's layer cookie bars

My friend Laura made our family a grilled barbecue chicken pizza and a grilled pepperoni pizza for dinner last night. I don't have the recipes yet but I'm working on it! You'll have to make those. But first, you'll want to stop what you're doing and make these layer cookie bars right now. They are incredible. I wasn't even sure what was in them when I first tried them but they are rich, rich, rich. Absolutely unreal. Hall of Fame for sure!!
P.S. I had another taste of my friend Morgane's ultimate chocolate brownies last night and was reminded of how sinful they are. You've got to try those too.

hershey's layer cookie bars (my neighbor friend Laura)
1 1/2 sticks butter
6 tablespoons Hershey's cocoa
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup Heath Bits o' Brickle toffee bits
1 3/4 cup crushed vanilla wafer crumbs (about 50 wafers, crushed)
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup Hershey's Special Dark chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts

Heat oven to 350. Melt butter in a 13x9x2-inch pan in oven. Combine crumbs, cocoa and sugar; sprinkle over butter.
Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly on top of crumb mixture. Top with chocolate chips and toffee bits, then nuts; press down firmly.
Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Chill, if desired. Cut into bars. Store covered at room temperature. About 36 bars.

mom's teriyaki sauce (grilled chicken)

This has been a favorite of mine since I was very young. My mom liked to marinate a London Broil and have my dad grill it (and he always liked to grill everything until it was "dead", and still does). This marinade is great for beef or chicken. I often requested mom's grilled teriyaki with double baked potatoes for my birthday dinners.

mom's teriyaki sauce (my mom)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 cup oil (I use half that)
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Combine all ingredients and marinate your favorite meat. For best results, marinate overnight then throw on the grill!

What I have to say- I remember my mom would often double the recipe. She would ask my dad to put the meat on the grill and as the meal grilled she'd boil the excess marinade in a saucepan over the stove so she could pour the marinade over the cooked meat. Delicious!

roasted chili-corn salsa

 
This is Food Network Magazine's imitation recipe for Chipotle's roasted chili-corn salsa. The first time I tried it I served it as a salsa and I didn't feel the flavors had settled well enough but it was delicious on my Cafe Rio style salad. The second day it was perfect served as a salsa so be sure to "marinate".

roasted chili-corn salsa (Food Network Magazine, June 2011)
1/2 small poblano chile pepper, seeded
3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
kosher salt
1 cup fresh corn kernels (from 2 ears) or 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons chopped red onion
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Preheat a grill to medium high. Brush the poblano with 1 teaspoon olive oil and grill, skin-side down, until charred but still firm, about 5 minutes. Cool slightly; peel and finely chop.
If using fresh corn, bring a small pot of slated water to a boil. Ad the corn and cook until tender, 2 to 3 minutes; drain.
Mix the corn (if using frozen, add it here), poblano, jalapeno, cilantro and red onion in a bowl. Stir in the remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil, the lime juice, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

What I have to say- be sure to refrigerate for several hours to overnight to let the flavors come together.

cilantro lime dressing

My friend Annie made this delicious dressing for our fiesta Monday night. A salad is a sum of all its parts and this is definitely a really good part. YUM!

cilantro lime dressing (my friend Annie)
1/2 to 3/4 bottle Ranch dressing
juice of two limes
large handful of cilantro
1 clove minced garlic
1/2 to 1 minced jalapeno

Blend together and serve on your Cafe Rio style salad or burrito!